The field relates generally to detecting component wear, and more specifically, to methods and systems for detecting sub-surface features in a component that may indicate a decrease in service life of the component.
Structural decline in industrial components manifests itself both on the surface as well as below the surface. Proper inspection is required to accurately identify features indicating decline, e.g., decline resulting from corrosion and cracking. Visual inspections can be misleading and often provide only qualitative measures of decline by detecting surface issues. Detecting and quantifying decline or defects in industrial equipment can be challenging. While systems exist to scan for subsurface defects, i.e., computer tomography (CT) and X-rays, variations in different parts of the same type can cause accuracy problems. In addition some systems mischaracterize certain manmade features as corrosion or defects. Accurately detecting and quantifying decline features is critical to accurately modeling and predicting the life of industrial components.